Final answer:
Julie is closer to the surface than Sue because –38 is greater than –45, thus closer to 0, indicating that Julie is at a lesser depth.
Step-by-step explanation:
The inequality that explains why Julie is closer to the surface than Sue is because –38 > –45, so –38 is closer to 0 than –45. When dealing with negative numbers, the number that is greater is actually the one that is closer to zero. Since we are talking about depth below the surface, –38 feet is less deep than –45 feet, indicating that Julie is indeed closer to the water's surface.